our pretty little tales
by fleeting heartbeat
Summary: Because we're just a bunch of dysfunctional friends. —FT Cast, done for the Non-Romantic Boot Camp Challenge
1. the egoistic type

**author's note** done for the non romantic boot camp challenge on the anime/manga challenges forum. i'm thinking of doing them all for fairy tail, but i'll see. (for ramen, i'm thinking more of daisuke from digimon, lol. if you've watched zero two you'll get what i'm talking about) review and fav if you liked it, please? point out any mistakes, thank you.

**prompt** number 36, _cherry blossoms_

**characters** cosmos, kamika

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_well, i never pegged you for the egoistic type_

_._

"Look at these, Kamika," Cosmos nudged her partner as she raised her hands in the air, the earth below them glowing.

Kamika looked at the ground apprehensively and questioned, "Um…what the hell are you doing, Cosmos? The ground isn't going to blow up or something…is it?"

Cosmos looked at the dark-haired lady disdainfully as the ground began rumbling, catching Kamika by surprise.

"You don't trust me, do you?"

"I'm starting to think that you're getting a little _too_ dangerous after seeing you make plants grow in the middle of Uosuke's Lava Zone…"

The plant mage scoffed as a large tree sprouted out of the ground rapidly, sprinkling light pink petals all over them. Kamika's jaw dropped in amazement, eyes practically bulging out of their sockets at the sight of the cherry blossom tree towering over them.

"A-amazing!"

"Glad you know it," Cosmos smiled smugly before nudging Kamika. "Isn't it pretty?"

"You win, Cosmos. You're spectacular."


	2. what a guild's about

**author's note** because this suits them too much. (posting five by five). behold, the famous riverbank scene.

**prompt** number 25, _alone_

**characters** young!gray&amp;erza

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_if you don't know what a guild is about, i'll teach you_

_._

"So…why do you like being alone?"

Erza's gaze flickered from the river water to the raven-haired boy sitting next to her.

"I feel safer when I'm alone."

The ice-make mage scowled and retorted, "How does being alone make you feel safer? You're not making any sense."

She shrugged casually in response, wrapping her legs tightly with her arms. "I don't know," she admitted. "It's just that…whenever I'm not around other people, I guess. I don't have to wear my armour when there's no one here."

"You're still wearing your armour," Gray cocked an eyebrow in suspicion, prompting Erza to roll her eyes in annoyance.

"Armour around my heart."

"Sounds cheesy, _and_ it doesn't make sense."

Erza pressed a hand against her forehead and groaned, "A _metaphorical_ armour around my heart. How stupid can you get, Fullbuster?"

"Okay, _fine_," the younger boy relented, running a hand through his hair. "But still…you shouldn't always be alone. I mean, we're in a guild, right? We smile together, laugh together, walk together…and—and we should cry together too! We're all guild mates, friends…and family. No one should always be on their own."

Lips curling into a warm smile, Erza looked at the exasperated raven-head and whispered, "Thanks for being here for me then."

Then, extending a hand, he asked, "Friends?"

She blinked in surprise before accepting it, her smile growing wider.

"Friends."


	3. vain woman on the team

**author's note** anything to do with vanity, statues and cosmetics = evergreen = raijinshuu/elfman. in this case, the raijinshuu.

**prompt** number 21, _nail polish_

**characters** evergreen, bickslow, freed (raijinshuu)

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_what happens when you put a vain woman on the team_

_._

"Freed," Bickslow muttered unhappily as they trudged behind the brunette. "Why the heck are we doing this?"

_"__Doing this! Doing this!"_ his dolls repeated cheerfully, swirling around both of them.

"I should be asking _you_ that," Freed rolled his eyes. "_You_ were the one who made that stupid bet with Cana and lost. What made you think that Natsu and the others wouldn't 'accidentally' blow up the theatre in Onibus Town? And more importantly, why did you involve _me_?"

The figure eyes mage rubbed the bridge of his nose as he chuckled awkwardly, slinging an arm over his teammate's shoulder in an attempt to pacify him.

"Come on, friends should help each other out, right?"

_"__Help each other out! Friends! Friends!"_

"Yes, but for goodness sake, out of all things, do we _have_ to follow Ever buy _nail polish_?" the green-haired man nearly yelled in frustration, causing Evergreen to turn around and glare at the two men.

"Shut up, both of you," she snarled, turning around to face them properly. "I ran out of nail polish yesterday, so I need to buy more _stat_, you hear me? You're lucky I didn't send you to buy it on your own. You would be completely lost." Then, under her breath, she added, "Not to mention you doofuses probably can't tell nail polish and lipstick apart."

Freed coughed loudly and requested in a strained yet polite tone, "I beg of you not to insult my intelligence, Ever."

Evergreen harrumphed and crossed her arms, turning around. "Hurry up, you idiots. I don't have all the time in the world for you guys to waste. I need my nail polish. _Now_."

"How did I get caught up in this…" Freed wailed noisily.


	4. cry on my shoulder

**author's note** set after lisanna's pseudo-death. poor mira.

**prompt** number 13, _terrifying_

**characters:** young!mirajane&amp;erza

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_come cry on my shoulder _—_ let's be friends now._

_._

She could hear the sobs even from outside the small cottage the Strauss siblings lived in. Tears pricked the corner of her eyes, but she swallowed her fear and told herself, _I've got to be strong. She needs someone now._

She slid in the key Elfman had given her and unlocked the door quietly, careful not to make too much noise as she tiptoed towards Mirajane's room. Pressing her ear against the wooden door, she could make out sniffles and muffled words and—

"Mirajane?" she called softly, knocking the door. "It's me, Erza."

"E-Erza?" There was some shuffling inside the room. "C-come in, it—the door isn't locked."

Twisting the doorknob, Erza entered the room to find the white-haired Take Over mage sitting on the ground, photo albums scattered all over the floor in front of her. She briefly caught sight of three happy faces smiling widely in one of the photographs before Mirajane closed it and pushed the albums to a corner, making space for the Requip mage.

Mirajane looked awful, she had to admit. If it weren't for the fact that a tragedy had just taken place, Erza would've laughed and teased her mercilessly about her sorry state then, but now, when she looked at her rival, her stomach twisted uncomfortably.

"I—what did you come here for?" Mirajane demanded, trying to sound tough.

Instead of retorting, Erza simply kneeled down next to her, wrapping her in a tight embrace as she whispered, "I'm sorry." She felt Mirajane stiffen for a moment before slowly responding back, melting into the hug as sobs escaping her lips.

"I—I can't believe Lisanna's gone, Erza. She—she died r-right in front of my eyes, there wasn't even any corpse and _I couldn't do anything!_" she cried.

"Sh…" Erza murmured, stroking Mirajane's hair. "I'm sorry about what happened, Mirajane. It'll be alright…"

And the two sat there for quite a while, Mirajane sobbing and Erza whispering words of comfort to her.


	5. friends are friends

**author's note** i'm not bashing toby. i'm just keeping him in character. he's done this before on galuna island.

_edit: whoops, put up the author's note before i posted, i'm so sorry ): but anyways..._

**prompt** number 30, _hospital_

**characters** toby, yuka, sherry, lyon, jura, chelia (lamia scale)

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_friends can do idiotic things at time, but oh well _— _friends are friends_

_._

"God, Toby, what the hell?" Lyon groaned the moment he stepped into the hospital room. "This isn't the first time you accidentally stuck your Paralysis Claw in your head and ended up here."

"Exactly," Jura nodded, lumbering in and shutting the door behind him. "What kind of silly excuse do you have this time?"

Chelia, who was sitting on the left side of Toby's bed, back facing the window, sighed and explained, "Well, he insisted that we play Monkey — which is a _really_ overly childish game — and he ended up as the monkey in the middle."

"Then," Toby, who was sitting on the opposite side of the bed, continued, "he got all upset and started cheating by using his Paralysis Claw."

Sherry blinked and queried, "How…exactly does that work?"

"His claws are longer. Makes it easier for him to catch the ball," Chelia replied flatly.

"Oh yeah…"

Jura snorted in amusement before prompting, "Go on. What happened after that?"

"He was trying to catch the ball and ended up sticking his claws in his head. Then this," Toby gestured towards a sleeping Toby. "This guy is going to be the death of me—"

"—us—" Sherry interjected.

"—one day."

Lyon and Jura sighed collectively and muttered, "That's so true."


	6. we shall brave the storm together

**author's note** i support them as a romantic pairing and the brotp. _don't judge me._

**prompt** number 38, storm

**characters** gajeel, juvia

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_fear not, for we shall brave the storm together_

_._

Gajeel watched from the corner of his eye as Juvia shrank in her seat, eyes wandering towards the window nervously. A streak of lightning flashed across the dark sky suddenly and she flinched, bringing her knees up closer to her chest.

He had to admit, he was quite uncomfortable in his present situation. Not that he wasn't used to Juvia's company, but…he was in _Fairy Hills_. Usually, it was Juvia at his house, not the other way around. Somehow he had managed to sneak into the dorms without being caught, but it still didn't feel too right.

"Hey," he called gruffly, attracting her attention to him. "What's wrong, rain woman?"

The blue-haired lady's gaze dropped to the floor as she whispered, "I—I don't like storms. It…reminds me too much of…_before_."

_Before, huh? _Gajeel thought, sinking further into the couch as his eyes flickered around the room, decorated with a ridiculous amount of _'Gray-sama'_ related things. Sometimes he really wondered what was going through his best friend's mind.

"That bad?" he queried and she gave him a tiny nod. Awkwardly, he shifted closer to her and said what they both knew was something _really_ out of character for him, "I'll be here for you." Hastily, he added, "So you won't be scared. It makes you feel better, right?"

Juvia laughed softly and relaxed into Gajeel's muscular arm, murmuring as her eyelids started drooping, "Thank you, Gajeel-kun…"

"Well, that's what best friends are for, rain woman."


	7. plan better when you're up to no good

**author's note** set in younger years before lisanna's pseudo-death plus double dose of mischief :D truth to be told, i'm not sure what the punishment is. whatever natsu and gray were afraid of when erza dragged them back from the island?

**prompt** number 42, mischief

**characters** young!ft cast (sans lucy, wendy, juvia and gajeel) &amp; makarov

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_plan better when you're up to no good_

_._

"Look at this," Makarov ordered sternly, gesturing at the pile of paperwork sitting on the table. "This is all the work I have to do because of the trouble you lot have caused. You brats are the most troublesome bunch ever."

Natsu raised a hand and protested indignantly, "'jii-chan, the Magic Council is stupid." He immediately earned a punch in his face from Erza, while the rest collectively shushed him, save for Gray and Mirajane who were busy cackling away in agreement (for once). "What? It's true!"

_Certainly it is, at times,_ Makarov thought to himself in amusement, though he maintained his stern façade in front of the youngsters assembled before him. Tapping his staff against the table impatiently, he stated, "All of you are to blame for the mess created. I believe a punishment is in order, yes?"

Erza stepped forward and bowed deeply. "I'm sorry for the mischief we've caused, Master. You may punish us in any way you like."

Just as the corners of Makarov's lips twitched upwards into a smile, Levy spoke up quietly, "Um, what exactly is the punishment? And why am I here?"

"Yeah, Master," Cana chimed in, narrowing her eyes at the old man. "Elfman, Lisanna, Levy, Laki and I weren't doing anything wrong."

"Us too!" Jet and Droy wailed in unison.

Laxus rolled his eyes and scoffed, "What did I do to deserve this? I was simply minding my own business…"

"Master," Mirajane walked up closer to Makarov, who was now sweating buckets. "Are you sure there isn't any other motive behind this punishment?"

Erza would've started a fight with Mirajane if it weren't for the fact that Makarov seemed unusually nervous all of a sudden.

"A-ahem. Perhaps I'll rethink your punishment," he coughed, averting his gaze from the children. _Next time I'm up to mischief, I'll have to make sure my plan is flawless. Damn it…_


	8. today's sky looks especially blue

**author's note** i still support nali. it's my otp, for goodness sake. but this is a non-romantic challenge. there will be friendship nalu too sooner or later.

**prompt** number 12, always

**characters** young!natsu&amp;lisanna

**disclaimer** applies for both story and title, which was taken from fairy tail opening 7

* * *

_today's sky looks especially blue since it's completely cleared up — evidence (daisy x daisy), fairy tail opening 7_

_._

"Natsu?"

Next to her, the salmon-haired boy stirred and mumbled, "Yeah?"

"We'll always be friends, right?"

"Of course. What makes you think we won't, Lisanna?" he raised an eyebrow skeptically at the white-haired girl gazing at the azure blue sky above them.

Lisanna giggled and held up her pinky finger to the sky, "I don't know. I just wanted to be sure. Promise, Natsu?"

He grinned and held up his pinky finger too.

"Promise."


	9. the best way to win is this

**author's note** read fairy tail zero if you don't understand. set in that time.

**prompt** number 34, "You're lying"

**characters** alive!mavis, alive!yury, still good!purehito, younger!warrod, alive!zeira

**warning** minor spoilers for fairy tail zero, a sort-of prequel to the actual manga

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_the best way to win is this_

_._

"You're lying."

"No I'm not," Mavis insisted stubbornly, crossing her arms. "From earlier until the exact time I stated my truth, you've blinked approximately fifty-two times."

"Prove it, Mavis," Yury challenged, refusing to believe that he had lost to a twelve-year-old girl _again_, not to mention that she had used the same trick on him. "How can I be sure that you're not lying? What evidence do you have?"

"I've been counting," the young blond replied cheerfully. "And I haven't blinked once yet. My eyes are hurting."

Yury winced as Mavis widened her sore eyes, as if to prove her point. From nearby, Purehito and Warrod started laughing boisterously as they watched Yury try and think of a comeback.

"Suck it up, Dreyar! The little girl's going to win _again_," Purehito teased, emphasising the last word on purpose. Next to him, Warrod burst into laughter again.

Yury scowled at his friends while Zeira, who was sitting quietly a distance away from the two elder men, muttered, "What a dumb way to win the game, Mavis…"

"Can I blink yet?"

When Yury didn't answer, Mavis took it as a 'yes' and blinked as Warrod chuckled, "Too bad for you, Yury."

"What kind of friends are you guys?"

Purehito smirked, "Really good ones."


	10. the revenge we seek

**author's note** that reminds me, i'm super lagging behind on my oneshot collective entry. and mirror distortions. oh noooo

**prompt** number 18, revenge

**characters** pre-gmg!kagura&amp;millianna, mentions of simon and jellal

**warning** spoilers

**disclaimer** applies

* * *

_the revenge we seek_

_._

"You had a brother?"

Kagura nodded slowly, clenching her fists as she explained, "Back then, when we were still living in Rosemary Village, these Zeref followers attacked…they took my brother. I never saw him again."

"They were capturing children to construct the Tower of Heaven," Millianna looked away nervously. "I was one of them. It was horrible. There were so many children — there were some elderly people too, like Rob-jiichan."

Slightly intrigued, Kagura raised an eyebrow and asked, "I'm sorry to hear that. What…what happened to him?"

Millianna fidgeted in her seat, looking very uncomfortable. "He died."

"…oh. I'm sorry," Kagura apologised, lowering her gaze. "Those people are simply wicked. I can't believe there are people who would commit such atrocities. It's simply unforgivable."

Millianna gave her a strained smile before fiddling with her fingers and sighing, "Actually, there was a rebellion many years ago, when I was just a kid. We—we almost made it out of the tower, but suddenly Jellal — he used to be our friend, b-but I don't know what happened and suddenly, he, he just—" tears stung her eyes and she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "He just turned _evil_ all of a sudden! We were going to escape the island and Er-chan went to look for him, but instead he let her escape and the rest of us were stuck in the tower! I—I mean, I know we believed in him last time, b-but—" sobs escaped her and Kagura patted her back awkwardly.

_It must have been a very traumatic experience, _she concluded mentally as Millianna tried to hold back her tears and continue her story.

"_He used us_, Kagura-chan! I—I can't believe he tricked us and used us and—poor Simon, he had to go through all t-that knowing it was wrong and still die in the end!"

She stiffened immediately.

"Did you say…Simon?" she asked, her heart thumping faster.

"Y-yeah."

Tentatively, she queried, "What…happened? How did he die?"

"Jellal. He—he killed Simon."

Her eyes widened in shock at once as she let the words sink in.

_Jellal killed Simon._

_After all this time…after searching for him all my life…he's gone?_

Blind rage clouded her mind as she glared at the ground murderously.

_I'll kill him!_

"What does he look like? Where is he?" she asked shakily, and Millianna looked over at her curiously, seemingly not expecting the question to come out of her. "I—Simon. He's my brother." _No harm telling her…if she knows where Jellal is._

"I—I don't really know how to explain," Millianna bit her lower lip hesitantly, fingers playing with her cape. "B-but he has blue hair, and this really distinctive red tattoo over his right eye. It's really kinda weird." She let out a hollow chuckle before her face grew grim. "I want to take my revenge."

_I do too._

"I understand how you feel. I loved Simon dearly. He—he was the best brother I could ever ask for. I spent my whole childhood…all my days up till the day I joined this guild looking for him, and before you told me about what happened, I admit I was still searching. But now…now, _I hate Jellal!_" she almost cried, startling the younger mage. "If you join Mermaid Heel, I'll train you…and we can have our revenge." She gestured towards her sword. "I…I made a vow never to unsheathe this sword because of its power. Just unsheathing it would…might kill someone. But…I think I'm going to change that vow."

The other mage inhaled sharply and prompted, "You mean…"

Taking a deep breath, she nodded, "I will only unsheathe this sword, Archenemy, to kill one person." Her face grew dark with hatred as she declared, "Jellal."

Millianna had found the guild to join.


End file.
